Saturday, November 29, 2008

Uncle David and Untie Yesenia came to visit us on Thanksgiving night. Sofia was ready to call it a day but not before seeing them. Notice she's in her PJ's and not a happy camper. She wanted to give Uncle David and Auntie Yesenia her Christmas wish list...but was too tired after the Super Baby stunt..see below.

After 7 weeks of training this is it! It was an amazing day! Here are the pics! Hope you all had a great Thanksgiving!

The day started at 6am for us. We decided to take the rail train all the way to the Convention Center instead of driving. We figured it was going to be cheaper on the gas and we wouldn't be paying parking. Here's Sofia all prepped up for the run. It was chilly in the morning so, I had to make sure she was comfortable. She was not happy in this pic, I woke her up! yep! pay back!

We arrived at 8:30am and it was a sea of people we couldn't see the starting line.

Wednesday, November 26, 2008

Conversations with Your DaughterBy Chuck ColsonTalking Points on 'Twilight'The movie Twilight made a staggering $70.6 million at the box office in its opening weekend. To give you some perspective on that, that’s the fourth highest opening weekend for a movie this year. The film website Box Office Mojo reports, “According to distributor Summit Entertainment’s exit polling, 75 percent of Twilight’s audience was female and 55 percent was under 25 years old.”

So chances are if you have a teen or preteen daughter, she’s already seen Twilight. And if she hasn’t, she will want to. That raises some questions for parents: What kind of values is this movie promoting? And how should I talk to my daughter about them?

If you remember Mark Earley’s “BreakPoint” commentary about the Twilight books (which form the basis of the movie), you’ll know that the question being raised here about Twilight’s values is a tricky one. That’s because, as Mark explained, on the surface, this love story between a vampire and a high school girl looks like it’s selling a pro-abstinence message. And several Christians and conservative commentators have bought into that image and are enthusiastic about it—which isn’t hard to understand.

If we had found a book or a movie that really offered a healthy, chaste, chivalrous vision of romance that was attracting teenagers by the millions, well, that would indeed be cause for rejoicing. And I’d be as eager as anyone to climb on the bandwagon and help promote them.But unfortunately, I can’t do that this time. Because underneath the surface, there are some truly disturbing themes and ideas in Twilight. Chief among these is that old, dangerous idea that a “bad boy” can easily be won and tamed by a “good girl”—an idea that has brought heartache to untold millions of good girls. As a Christian, I obviously believe that redemption and change is possible for sinners. But I also know that human beings alone cannot change each other.So when you’re talking to your daughter about Twilight, here are a few points you might touch on.

It is not romantic, or safe, when a boy spies on you, follows you, and sneaks into your room without your knowledge (and especially without your parents’ knowledge).It is not romantic, or safe, when someone tells you he’s dangerous and he’s killed people, to give answers like, “It doesn’t matter,” and, “I’m not afraid.” Again, I’ve worked with repentant murderers in prison. I know firsthand that redemption is possible for them. But that doesn’t mean that what they’ve done doesn’t matter.

It is not romantic, or safe, to try to see how close you and your boyfriend can get to the edge of danger without going over.And it is not romantic, or safe, to offer yourself up for a boy to do whatever he wants to you—symbolized in the movie by the young heroine asking the vampire to bite her so she can become like him.

I know that Christian parents already have to spend a lot of time undoing the damaging lessons that their children are being taught—by the culture, by their peers, and even by their schools.But it says something very sad about our culture when we have to argue that a young girl dating a dangerous killer is not a good role model, even if they are being abstinent.

If I were a betting man, I’d wager my wallet that many of you—or, dare I say, all of us—are worried about America’s future. And, for many of us, this worry is starting to feel more like fear.How quickly the world has changed in just a few months! By and large it’s an attitude shift, from confidence in our continual and gradual development as people and as a nation, to uncertainty on both accounts.

Attitude isn’t everything. But in this case, it teaches. Our greatness as a nation has relied on our unrelenting hope. If we’ve been good at facing foes, if we’ve been unafraid of work, if we’ve had big ideas and the will to make them work, it’s because our hearts have been accustomed to believing in things unseen.Some have said this hopeful USA is a product of American “exceptionalism”—a belief that our country is destined for global leadership and exceptional success. Hogwash! Our real success has less to do with national pre-destination and more to do with courageous Americans who dared to believe in every man and woman’s, God-given capacity for greatness, and with wise Americans who rejected its many counterfeits.

Fill a country’s borders with such heart-driven, truth-driven people, and that country will excel.But now we see the lighthouse of hopeful America shining considerably less bright. What do we do? Is it too late? Are the walls of this exceptional nation about to come tumbling down?Oh no. I don’t think so. At least not the walls that count. We are entering prime time for real growth. We are reaching a tipping point where America may come face-to-face with the cause of our dwindling hope. With a little more time on our hands and a fewer comforts we may have the presence to recall that never did our hope rest in ourselves. No, the audacity of our hope was not brazen self-confidence. Nor was it confidence in government, politicians, or political parties.In God we trusted.

Remember? Hopeful America always liked dollars and cents, but the strength of its workforce was not its passion for money. Its power was its purpose—to live and love today as a worthy preparation for an eternal tomorrow. Yes, our strength was hope in things unseen.If we don’t go back, we will look like old, cold Europe very soon.God bless,Father Jonathan

Father Jonathan Morris is author of the new book, “The Promise: God’s Purpose and Plan for when Life Hurts”. For information go to http://www.fatherjonathan.com/

Monday, November 24, 2008

My sister Yesenia was honorably accepted in the Phi Theta Kappa Honor Society of Richland College yesterday November 23rd. Congrats Sis! Sofia and I couldn't take pictures with her after the ceremony. Sofia was not in the best of moods so I left before it ended, nevertheless it was a nice ceremony.

Sandra Seaman

The guy to the right with the gray hair is Professor Polk, my Speech Professor.

Sunday, November 23, 2008

Well Friday was are first "Date" night since Sofia was born. I got some tickets to go see the Mavs from my company and it was more than a welcome reprieve. Not that I don't enjoy every moment with our litttle baby, but this is the kind of thing that re-energizes your batteries.The Mavs aren't as hot as they used to be, but they still got some star power, and there is always hope that they will do better than expected. So far they have won four in a row... so there is a cloud of optimism. They did break my heart a couple of times, but I still love em. Check the video at the end pretty cools!!

The fabulous home of the Mavs and the Stars.

Me and my main squeeze... hmm after looking at this pick I need to get back excersizing... maybe the upcoming Turkey trot is a good place to start again!!! Groan.....

Friday, November 21, 2008

The clock is ticking and I'm getting nervous about this Turkey run, which in fact is next week. I think to myself, "what have I gotten myself into?" So here's the rundown:

It has been getting colder...Texas colder but we runners are only cold the first 15 minutes after that it gets to feel pretty nice. Running with the Dallas group on Sunday mornings has been an uplifting experience. It is so nice to meet new people who love what you do as well. The only draw back is getting up so early and leave my warm bed and I have been having issues with my left side of my lower back, which in turn gives me issues with my hamstring on my left leg. I have been streching that muscle like crazy, I stopped streching it for several weeks and now I'm paying the price. My left toes get numb after running for 45 minutes and it is no fun, so i'm streching the heck out of it, last night my leg felt good so maybe i'm doing a good job.

I am also getting sick of eating pasta every Saturday night, but John is mixing it up alot so that helps.

I have already sign us up for the Turkey Trot run...yes, us. John and Sofia as well. They are doing the 3 mile run and Sofia also gets a bib and her Tot Trot T-shirt which I'm sure it won't fit but it will be her first T-Shirt run from many more to follow.

Our Coach Chrissy told us last night that we are more than ready for our Turkey run...but my nerves are getting the best of me. I have never ran in such a big event. I hear there will be thirty thousand people. But luckily, I don't have to cook, well, besides our famous pies that we will be cooking the night before.

I have also sign up for the 5-person Relay run in Dallas, December 14th. Our team is call: Lani's Warriors. How did we come up with the name? Well, it seems that I'm the only one that has a child still living at home, and no one wanted to use their childrens name, so I threw out Sofia's name and they said, well, yeah, that's cute but we need something else...so, I'll threw out Sofia's middle name, Lani then I said "How about Lani's Warriors?" and they loved it! More about this team in the weeks to follow.

Anyhow, in regards to weather it will be a nice day on Thanksgiving day, it'll be 68 degrees, and our run starts at 9am. It will still be in the 50's in the morning so I have to make sure that Sofia is very well cover; we'll take some photos and we'll share them with you. Wish me luck!

Wednesday, November 19, 2008

Sofia had her Dr's appointment yesterday. She’s weighing in at 20 pounds at 9 months of age. Only gained 2 lbs from 3 months ago. Now, isn’t that nice? I wish I could only gained 2 lbs in 3 months.

But anyways, Sofia’s attitude changed the minute she saw Dr. Poter come in. She became serious and aware of him and it was so funny to watch, I think she’s getting familiar with him. Her progress is pretty good. Dr. Poter is very happy that she’s crawling and standing up on her own, he’s giving her 6 to 8 weeks to walk, he states she’ll definitely walk before her first birthday.

She’s also now moving on to more solids. That means more poop on her diaper. We did noticed last night that her diaper genie gets full a lot sooner than before, John states that is because her poop is getting bigger, I say it definitely smelling different too.

Now, Sofia got one shot on her leg and a poke on her middle finger to test her levels of iron. But the Evil Nurse Shot Witch was all business again. Sofia doesn’t like her; she’s not much of a talker and sometimes wears earplugs, she states some kids scream too loud, I think she just doesn’t want to talk to the parents, but whatever!

The Good Nurse Poke Witch was nicer. She was talking to Sofia, prepping her for the poke and very soothing. Sofia did cry but not as much as she did with the Shot Witch.

Sofia is growing at a good rate at the same time we are growing older at the same rate…my patience is growing too…funny how that happens.

P.S. Don't try this at home with your own children...notice that John has been practicing chinese techique since who knows when and he is best when sitting on the couch...note previous Ninja Baby footage.

Friday, November 7, 2008

Week 5:This week was an up and down situation starting with the vote on Tuesday which was pretty dissapointing but I am satisfied that Texas is still a red state with common sense and that other things were banned in the West coast was enough to keep my running going! So, here's the rundown:

My dog Lenny had a hard time keeping up with me when I ran the full hour two weeks ago, so I decided to give him a break. I'm thinking an hour is too much for him. So, I'll take Lenny out on my short runs instead, I sure miss him though...

We are still training on hills. They are not easy but I love challenges and I don't think I like them but at least I am conquering them.

On Sundays, we are now running over and hour, oh and I've decided to go Dallas for these long runs since gas is now $1.99 a gallon! So, these long runs are hard but once you get a nice tempo going, yes, it can be done. This week we are running an hour and twenty minutes long run. We are working towards running an hour and thirty minutes long, we'l l see how that goes...

My husband Chef John the Extraordinaire, has been preparing this AWESOME Blackened Chicken Fettucini on Saturday nights and let me tell you is DARN GOOD! He spices up the pasta and is to die for! For those people that are not runners, you need to eat carbs the night before a long run to get the energy you need. So, my hubby has been taking care of my running fuel! But going back to Chef John the Extraordinaire, each week, he's been exceeding my expectations; I have never been a fan of Pasta, never liked it. But this! Is out of this world! It is spicy and the chicken cooked just right! You want the recipe, I hear you say?

Anyways, I have also discovered Power Bar. Its pretty good stuff and it gives me what I need to keep on running, I don't like that Goo stuff. I think my weight is now back to pre-baby stage, I have not weighed, I hate weighing but now is not about loosing weight anymore is about getting to the finish line! With three more weeks to go, I can see myself making it. My running pace is at 9.39 minutes, when I started this training I was at 10:32 so I have improved and this keeps me going! It is all about discipline and commitment, it is not easy but possible when you put your mind to it.

Monday, November 3, 2008

Welcome to the Seamans HaUnTeD HoUsSsSsSe HA HA HA he... ha ....ha....hee.....!!!!!!.....Well maybe mildly inhabited by some benign plastic spirits house. Sofia's first Halloween was pretty fun, despite the small turn out of kids trick or treating. What happened to the good ole days where it was non-stop kid action? We had maybe 6 sets of kids come by the house this year, it was definately down. I miss seeing the outfits. We saw 2 Transformers, a couple princesses, hulk, spiderman, Ironman and Batman. I actually felt pretty safe knowing that all the Super Heroes were on the Scene. I suspected a small turnout when there was alot of houses that did not deck out for Halloween; maybe Obamas promise of redistributing wealth caused the Treaters to go to more well established areas outside their neighborhood to go trick or treating and load up on the bounty, or maybe the ones that normally pounded down the doors getting that candy feared that it would taken away and given to others, who maybe only knocked on a couple doors, for the sake of fairness??? Ok enough political sarcasm. It was her first year and we didn't plan to take her out because she was still too little and what would we do with all that candy...pshh we are adults and don't touch the stuff...well...maybe butterfingers, ohh and Baby Ruth those rock, yeah.. and skittles...ok ... I admit... I took all the left overs to work!!! We did dress her up which was alot of fun and made it all worth it!The above picture is how the Trick or Treaters were greated " Yes.. What do you want??"

Our little Pumpkin!!! Que pasa Calabasa??

The only living pumkin in my pumpkin patch :(

The lone survivor. I got demolished by the bane of my patch... the dreaded Squash vine borer. After 3 years of failure I will bring out the big guns next year... The hell with organic gardening...pshh...I will not only bring out the sevin dust, but also eight, nine, and monkey style kung fu dust on their bug rears!!!! YEAH!!! Get ready for the beat down bugs... I be like " why you bugging punks?"

Daddy " leaf me alone" ok! I'm not trying to be like everyone else, I dressed this way first and they copied me, these are my henchmen!!

Me and Mommie!

We are truly blessed!!

Actually Dad, to be more specific I'm a French Pumkin. You can call me "Le Potiron"!!

Sunday, November 2, 2008

It really never occurred to me how much this Fall back changing time event was going to effect my little Sofia.

She was feeling the effect of it all day today. I didn't think that one hour was going to be a big deal but it was for her. Her schedule doesn't change much nowadays unless she's sick and loses her appetite. However, this evening was the worst for her.

She loves her bath time, but it didn't not come fast enough for her. While watching the Cowgirls play today, oops, I mean the Cowboys, Sofia, was in one of those moods that whatever you do, she's not having any of it. It was 6pm but for her it was 7pm and she needed to unwind, take her bath and take her last 6 ouncer. At Zayden's Pirate Birthday party today, Sofia was uneasy as well. Although, she did liked one of the books Mima got her today, I know she liked it because, we couldn't get it out of her mouth. Thanks Mima! You are sweet!

But at the end of the day we did managed to get her all happy. God willing, tomorrow is a better day for her. I hear Arizona is the only State that doesn't change times...lucky for them.

Saturday, November 1, 2008

Have you ever wonder how many people make a difference in your life? I can count very few.

They are for the most part strong in character, honest, sincere and most of all geniune. A person who is genuine towards me is whom I have always found to be a good friend. Today, John, Sofia and I were shopping at our local Sam's when I made a quick left and then there he was...my Speech College Professor, Mr. Larry Polk.

I stared at him not knowing what to do, but then, I noticed that he did recognize me and then it hit me! Mr. Polk! The man who was able to teach me that public speaking did not kill.

I walked towards him and he gave me this big bear hug! I haven't seen him in 9 years and he recognized me!! I was amazed! How many teachers can recognize you after 9 years!?

I think he might of recognized me for my very interesting speeches that I gave in his class...to say that on my last speech, I mentioned the name Louis Farrakhan, but before me saying this person's name, he was really enjoying my speech, even laughing! I liked to make him laugh on my speeches, but after I said this Louis name, his face went stone cold. Mind you, I did not know who this Louis guy was until later, much later. It was John's idea to include this guys name in my speech so I blamed John for my "B" grade on my very last speech of the class.

But going back to Mr. Polk, what sweet man he is. wow, I sure miss his class and the energy he gives everyone in his class. He is very eloquant but firm professor. He makes you believe that you can do it, that public speaking is not that bad and I agree with him!

Anyways, I just wanted to share this personal story with whoever is crazy enough to still read our blog, but Mr. Polk is truly an amazing person and professor. My hats off to him.

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About Me

We are two goofie people that got married back in June of 2001 then 6 years later we made another goofie precious little girl named Sofia then we waited a year and decided to procreate another baby girl. We also have two goofie dogs, Lenny and Billy. We live in this goofie house close to a walking trail and we are very happy in our little goofie world.

The Real Deal

Make love a priority. Corinthians1 13

1If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. 4Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8Love never fails.

Sandra's Favorite Movies

Sandra Favorite Books

Excerpt from Purpose Driven Life

Life is all about love.Because God is love, the most important lesson he wants you to learn on earth is how to love. It is in loving that we are most like him, so love is the foundation of every command he has given us "The whole Law can be summed up in this one command: Love others as you Love yourself." Learning to love unselfishly is not an easy task. It runs counter to our self-centered nature. That's why we're give an a lifetime to learn it....

... Love cannot be learned in isolation. You have to be around people- irritating, imperfect, frustrating people...

..Let love be your greatest aim...

Excerpt #3 from PDL

Love Is an Action12/18/2008Dear children, let us stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our actions. 1 John 3:18 (NLT)*** *** *** ***Love is something you do. Do you really love someone? Let’s see how you act toward that person. You show love by what you do, not just by what you feel.Love is more than attraction and more than arousal. It’s also more than sentimentality, like so many of today’s songs suggest. By this standard, is love dead when the emotion is gone? No, not at all. Because love is an action; love is a behavior.Over and over again, in the Bible, God commands us to love each other. And you can’t command an emotion. If I told you “Be sad!” right now, you couldn’t be sad on cue. Just like an actor, you can fake it, but you’re not wired for your emotions to change on command. Have you ever told a little kid, “Be happy!” I’m trying, daddy!If love were just an emotion, then God couldn’t command it. But love is something you do. It can produce emotion, but love is an action.The Bible says, “Let us stop just saying we love each other; let us really show it by our actions” (1 John 3:18 NLT). We can talk a good act: “I love people.” But do we really love them? Do you really love them? Our love is revealed in how we act toward them.

Excerpt #2 from PDL

Love Is a Choice2008/11/25… That you may love the Lord your God, listen to his voice, and hold fast to him. For the Lord is your life, and he will give you many years in the land he swore to give to your fathers, Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. Deuteronomy 30:20 (NIV)*** *** *** ***Love is a choice and a commitment. You choose to love or you choose not to love.Today we’ve bought into this myth that love is uncontrollable, that it’s something that just happens to us; it’s not something we control. In fact, even the language we use implies the uncontrollability of love. We say, “I fell in love,” as if love is some kind of a ditch. It’s like I’m walking along one day and bam! – I fell in love. I couldn’t help myself.But I have to tell you the truth – that’s not love. Love doesn’t just happen to you. Love is a choice and it represents a commitment.There’s no doubt about it, attraction is uncontrollable and arousal is uncontrollable. But attraction and arousal are not love. They can lead to love, but they are not love. Love is a choice.You must choose to love God; he won’t force you to love him (Deuteronomy 30:20). You can thumb your nose at God and go a totally different way. You can destroy your life if you choose to do that. God still won’t force you to love him. Because he knows love can’t be forced.And this same principle is true about your relationships: you can choose to love others, but God won’t force you to love anyone.